


The Burn Of Your Touch

by LavenderHere



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - Hospital, Anko Family (Hetalia), M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-17 10:27:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29098779
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LavenderHere/pseuds/LavenderHere
Summary: Lukas and Emil are both caught in a terrible house fire, after being found by firefighters they are saved and both put into hospital. Tino and Matthias are nurses at the hospital and work together to help the two brother’s get better. Will Lukas find out why the fire happened? Does he have feelings for Matthias? Perhaps.
Relationships: Denmark/Norway (Hetalia), Hong Kong/Iceland (Hetalia), Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 14





	1. Burn It All To Ash

Lukas inhaled the smoke in the air, choking on it slightly. He wafted the gas out of his way and tried to stay as low on the floor as possible. Looking around he saw an open window; he was about to jump to safety when he remembered. 

Emil.

He crawled along the floor, his brother’s room in sight. He pushed open the door as best as he could and made an opening big enough for him to wiggle through.

“Emil! Are you in here?” He rasped desperately, waiting for a response and his heart began hammering against his chest when nothing came back.

He could have sworn he heard and answer, well it was less of an answer and more of a continuous cough. Lukas attempted to say his brother’s name once again.  
He heard voices and footsteps, he glanced towards the doorway and yelped in shock when the door was kicked down.

“Look! A survivor! Lift him carefully lads!” One of the voices called.

Lukas whined and tried to call out for his brother one more time, but his smoke-filled lungs would not let him speak. His vision became blurry, slowly becoming black.

-

He woke up with a jolt, an oxygen mask around his mouth. He moved around, trying to lift it off to make a call for someone. Anyone. A nurse who was rushing him to an emergence room noticed and looked down at the other shaking his head.

“Hello there! What is your name?” He asked.

“L-lukas” The Norwegian replied weakly.

“Okay Lukas, I’m Mathias. You’re in safe hands just please try not to move okay buddy?” The newly named Mathias looked down, smiling at Lukas as best he could.

Lukas did not have the energy to respond, he nodded as his head fell back down onto the pillow.

Mathias looked back up and his face suddenly became serious, he began yelling at others in the room. They suddenly stopped and Mathias began pointing rapidly at different equipment in the room.

Lukas couldn’t make out what the other was saying but his bed was shoved against a wall and many nurses came up and began attaching things to his body.

Lukas took one breath before passing out once more.  
-  
Sluggishly, Lukas eyes opened. He felt numb up and down his body, it was almost painful. The oxygen was still securely wrapped around his nose and mouth but this time it felt more comfortable than before. 

Lukas tired to make his neck work by glancing to the side to see what type of machine he was hooked to, just your standard heart rate. His breathing had calmed, and he did not feel as if he was being choked at the neck by careless hands.

Sat in a white hospital bed, blue curtains pulled around the bed. He took it in, trying to control his breathing. What had happened?

The last thing he remembers was driving up to the house and seeing black smoke falling out of the windows. He had quickly as possible got out of the car and ran in, he knew it was stupid of him, but Emil could of still be in there. 

Lukas had sped up the stairs but then remembered that keeping low was a better option. It was always mentioned at school that he is keeping low was a good thing, so you didn’t get so much smoke in your lungs. Lukas had remembered when Emil was younger, he used to go on about it.

Emil.

Lukas suddenly sat up ignoring the pain that coursed through his body, he felt tears pour down his face making his sight fuzzy, but he just about made out a person pulling back the curtains, stepping in and closing them once again.

Lukas fought against the wires so cruelly wrapped around his body, all the sudden movements hurt but he had to get out of here and find his brother. He had to be here somewhere, anywhere. Lukas just had to know he was okay.

“Hey, Hey! Come on, please calm down” The man said, Lukas slightly recognised the voice from earlier.

The blonde man approached Lukas, sitting on the bed. He slowly picked up a box of tissues and turned back to the man.

“Come on, breath with me. One in and one out” The nurse demonstrated, inhaling in and out.

Lukas gave in and began doing the same thing, slowly falling for the comforting voice of the man in front. 

Once finally calmed down, the nurse took the tissues from the side of the bed. Handing them to Lukas, although at first hesitant to touch them he accepted the offer from the medical professional.

“So, you’re Lukas?” The man said after taking the box back with a smile.

Lukas just nodded, his eyes falling back onto the bedsheets as he sat up properly leaning against the pillow.

“Do you remember my name or not?” The nurse raised his eyebrow.

“No…” Lukas’s reply came stiff.

“Well, I’m Matthias. I’ll be taking care of you until you are better. You okay with that?” Matthias grinned.

“Yes, I am” Lukas felt more confident to produce more words.

“Wonderful! Now, those were some pretty bad burns that you have there, don’t worry though. They will heal soon enough” Matthias assured.

“Thank you” Lukas nodded.

Matthias smiled again, nodding as he got up.

“Now, everything is going to be a little shaky at first but I’m sure you’ll be fine” Matthias gave a thumbs up “Any questions you would like to ask me before we go through how your day will go?”

“My brother, where is he?” Lukas looked up at the other with pleading eyes.

“Well, what’s his name? Do you think he would be in the hospital?” Matthias gave a confused look, but it had a dash of concern.

“I’m hoping, his name is Emil Steilsson” Lukas breathed.

Mathias cringed a little, that name rung a bell. He could have sworn he heard Tino mention that name yesterday. The two hadn’t thought they could be related because their second names were not the same. If it were the kid Tino was nattering on about yesterday, then perhaps it would be better to not tell Lukas what had happened.

“Oh yeah, he’s in the teenage ward. He is in good hands don’t worry” Matthias gave the most reassuring smile he could possibly managed.

Lukas could finally breath again but was slightly suspicious of his first facial expression. He was just glad his brother was safe.

“Anyway, I will come here at around 8:00am to give you breakfast, moisturise your burns and give your medicine. Then lunch is around 12pm, you can choose what you want for all meals by the way. Dinner is at 5pm and lights out is 10pm. That alright with you?” Matthias explained.

Since there was nothing Lukas could do, he just nodded and glanced back around his small living space, he was going to have get used to this place.

“If you need help to the restroom down the hallway just give that remote a buzz, if you need serious help then there is button at the bottom which should say emergency underneath it” Matthias informed, pointing at the white remote next to Lukas’s bed “I’ll see you at Lunch!”

-

Matthias made his way into the breakroom with a heavy sigh, he leaned against the door as he shut it. 

“That was a heavy sigh, what’s up?” A familiar voice came, Matthias could already hear the smirk in his co-worker’s voice.

Tino walked out from the kitchen strolling up to Matthias, “Come on, let’s sit down”.

Matthias grabbed his lunch from the fridge and sat down at one of the tables, there were only a few other doctors and nurses. The break room was as it states in the name the room you go for your break. It’s a time where you can slow down and chill between your high and active life as a doctor.

“So, what’s up with you?” Tino asked, poking at his pasta. 

“What was the name of that kid you were going on about yesterday?” Matthias breathed.

“Oh, Emil Steilsson?” Tino answered after taking another bite of his food.

“Um, Yeah. What happened to him?” Matthias looked up.

“He was in a fire, terrible burns up and down his arms. I don’t think they will ever heal. Pretty sure there is some on his legs too. Poor kid” Tino sighed.

“Well, do you know if he has a brother?” Matthias prodded.

“I don’t know, I haven’t checked his file yet” Tino shrugged.

“One of my patients mentioned that they had a brother called Emil. He was in a fire too” Matthias stated.

“Well, I’ll check the files, come up to your ward and see if they are. That way once one of them is mobile enough they can’t see each other again. If not, then I think we have a missing person on our hands” Tino explained.

“Yeah, I hope not. I’m pretty sure they are, so what about wheelchairs?” Matthias suggested.

“Mat, they are in sort supply. We have to get them to people who really need it” Tino placed his fork in the empty bowl.

“Not my problem the government won’t fund the NHS enough money is it?” Matthias frowned.

“I didn’t say it was” Tino chuckled “ Come on, let’s go up”

The teen ward was on the 5th floor, so Tino and Matthias took the elevator. Tino had always favoured working with a younger generation which was good because he had always been amazing with children. Tino and Matthias went to the same Medical school and Matthias thought he was going to take the children’s doctor course along with his best friend because he was also good with children, but something had changed when Berwald had developed cancer.

Berwald was Matthias stepbrother, despite how different they were and how much they didn’t get along they still cared for one another deeply. Matthias had vowed to become a doctor for people his brother’s age with cancer. Thankfully, Berwald had recovered from his Leukaemia and was beginning to grow his hair back. The Swedish man would never say it because of his pride but he was proud of his brother.

Tino office was right outside the ward, it had bright yellow walls to try and make anyone who was in there feel safe. Tino didn’t keep many things organised but his office was his pride and joy if it were not organised then he wouldn’t be in a good mood. There were green succulents everywhere, children’s toys, books, and a couch.

Tino logged onto his computer, his fingers quickly fliting at the keys and clicking at the mouse. He mumbled to himself a little before going onto a file.

“Is your patients name Lukas Bondevik?” Tino asked, spinning around on his chair to the other.

“Yes, it is. So, are they related?” Matthias wondered.

“Yup, look. Lukas is Emil’s legal guardian. So, suspect they are pretty close huh?” Tino guessed.

“Hope so, wonder what happened to their parents?” Matthias shrugged.

“Some kids are just a lot less fortunate than us Mat” Tino sighed.

They both stood up and walked out the office. Tino was going to do his daily round in his ward. He usually asked each person if they wanted anything, it wasn’t part of his job he just liked to do it. Matthias, having nothing better to do and since he was still on break, decided to assist him. 

Most of them were sat up on there phones, reading a book, one kid even had a Nintendo Switch in his hand. They went through each person, every kid saying pretty much the same thing.

They finally reached Emil at the end; he didn’t really seem to be doing much. His head was lolled to the side and he was glaring out the window.

His arms were covered in white bandages a little different to Lukas’s, his pale skin almost blending in the bandage that was wrapped tightly around his arm. Matthias could see the corner of his lifeless lilac eyes; he was going to whisper into Tino’s ear to ask if he was dead, but he finally registered somewhere in his mind that someone was here and moved his head to look at them.

“Hi Emil! How are you doing today?” Tino smiled fondly at the boy.

“I’m fine” He rasped “Is it…” He could barely finish the sentence.

“No, don’t worry I’m not here to moisturise. I’m just here to do my daily check ins, I like to see how you all are!” Tino answered, already knowing what the other was going to ask.

Emil nodded faintly, like there was a ghost lying on the bed. Matthias had unfortunately seen many people die over the years he’d been doing this job and Emil looked closer to death than anyone he had ever laid his eyes on.

“This is Matthias by the way, he works in a different part of the hospital.” Tino introduced the taller man.

Emil hummed in acknowledgement of the other, giving a weak smile. Matthias shot back the biggest smile he could possibly manage.

“Well, sweetheart if you are alright, I’m going to go back down to another ward” Tino informed “Perhaps you should talk to Matthias while I’m gone”.

Tino nodded at the spiky haired blonde man and dashed off. Matthias watched until Tino turned the door of the ward and disappeared out sight. A sound of coughing brought him back.

Emil was covering his mouth, coughing into his hand. Matthias searched around the place and his eyes landed on a discarded oxygen mask. He tutted and sighed; some people were so careless. He walked over to pick it up and tried to place back around the teens. Matthias became irritated when Emil kept refusing to place it back on.

“It’s uncomfortable” He groaned in between coughs.

“Too bad, it can save your life” Matthias kept trying to place it back on.

“No, stop” Emil protested.

“If you let me put on the oxygen mask, I’ll tell you where your brother is” Matthias said firmly.

Matthias chuckled slightly when he noticed he had got the younger one’s attention. Emil, although still coughing, gave a wide-eyed stare at the Danish man. 

“You can’t manipulate me” Emil growled.

“Just put the damn mask on kid, dang” Matthias rolled his eyes “Trust me, I have a master’s degree in medicine”.

Emil gave in and snatched the mask of the other, snapping it around his nose and mouth. Suddenly, he stopped coughing.

“As if by magic-“ Matthias began but couldn’t finish his sarcastic remark when Emil interrupted.

“Shut up” Emil hissed.

Matthias just sighed and shook his head; he was right of course. This kid must be really headstrong to refuse a medical professional trying to help him.

“Where is my brother?” Emil’s eyes suddenly became huge and round, he was sad and asking a question he needed an answer too. Matthias did say he would tell him, so it was only fair not to lie to the teen.

“Your brother is on the 3rd floor in the ward that I work in, he is fine by the way. Once one of you becomes mobile again, we will allow you to see each other” Matthias explained, he was a little scared the headstrong was going to lash out but was surprised when he just nodded.

“He’s gonna be fine kid” Matthias assured.

“Thank you” Emil praised.

“No problem” Matthias replied.

“What are his burns like?” Emil asked, hope gleaming in his eyes. He needed some type of good news.

“They are alright kid; with enough care and time they will heal up in no time” Matthias flashed a smile.

“So, nothing like mine?” Emil said, his tone had become slightly more pointed.

“Hey, don’t say that. Just because yours won’t heal completely does not mean you can’t lead a successful life” Matthias grumbled.

“You say that as if you’re the one with the burns” Emil scoffed.

Matthias was taken aback; he knew he could never sympathise with a patient like this because he had no idea what he was going through but he could attempt to be a little more positive. Matthias always tried to look on the bright side of things no matter how dark they were although he had to keep in mind that not everyone was always so thankful about his optimism.

“Look kid-“ Mathias started.

“Just leave me alone, I don’t need you telling me that everything will work out fine” Emil rolled his eyes back towards the window. 

Matthias just scoffed and left the teen to wallow in his own self pity. He had tried but it was painfully clear Emil didn’t want to talk to anyone right now. He understood, the guy had been through a lot in the past 24 hours. 

Matthias break was over, so he decided to go down to his ward to see if he was alright. Tino had inspired him. The Danish man slid into the first patient’s curtain.

Eduard was Matthias first check in; he was actually a close friend of Tino’s. They had gotten on in the couple weeks that the other had been here. Eduard struggled with asthma, while not always a deadly illness the Estonian man’s case had seemed to be extremely serious. He had been put here until doctor’s deemed it was okay for him to be let out.

They chatted a little and if Matthias was honest, he felt a little better, Eduard was going on about some coding website he had found on his phone the other week and while Matthias didn’t really understand that much of what was coming out the other’s mouth he listened because Eduard didn’t have anyone else to rant to about his interests.

Next was Alfred, Matthias and Alfred got on a lot. They had the same personality, interest and had the same kind of vibe.

“Hey Ivan thank- Oh wait you’re not Ivan” Alfred shouted as soon as Matthias had pulled back the curtain.

“No, I’m not, I’m Matthias” Matthias replied smugly, chuckling at Alfred’s enthusiastic behaviour.

“Oh, hey dude! How are you doing?” Alfred asked.

“Just checking in on my patients, being a good nurse ya know?” Matthias answered, tapping his fingers on the back of his wooden clip board.

“Fair enough!” Alfred grinned.

Alfred had broken his leg in a skating accident, one of his friends had dared him to skateboard down the steepest hill in the area. He had went down successfully, however when he reached the bottom it seemed he had forgotten to stop and went headfirst over some metal bars and landed on his leg.

“So, why did you think I was Ivan?” Matthias asked, curiously.

“Oh, he is meant to be bringing me McDonald’s” Alfred responded.

“Alfred” Matthias said with a warning tone.

“What!? Hospital food sucks. It’s just this once” Alfred pleaded. 

Even though Matthias knew it would definitely would not just be this once he just sighed and nodded. He knew Ivan would control Alfred’s McDonald intake while he was in hospital, so he let it slide.

“What you want some?” Alfred suggested, raising an eyebrow.

“No thanks, I’m vegan” Matthias replied quickly.

“Oh yeah because of course you are, dang you are too healthy for your own good” Alfred muttered on.

“It’s actually easier than you think” Matthias gave a smirk at the other.

“No thanks dude, I choose chicken strips” Alfred admitted.

“Alright fair enough” Matthias rolled his eyes.

Speaking of food Ivan came through the curtains with bag and Matthias decided to get up and leave the two to eat their meal before he got caught by one of the doctor’s.  
He trailed his way through everyone before finally getting to Lukas.

Lukas was sat up with a book in hand, his plate and tray were pushed to the side on one of the tables. He looked peaceful and Matthias took a moment to admire how calm the Norwegian looks. Compared to what he had seen of the past couple of hours, he liked this facial expression the most. It was a lot better than the panic or desperation always written on his face. Perhaps one day he could make Lukas smile.

“Hiya Lukas” Matthias finally announced his presence to the other.

Lukas looked up with an element of surprise written on his face, he leaned over to his bed side table to grab a bookmark and place it in the book he was reading. 

“Hello Matthias” Lukas response, a lot faster and surer than before.

“I’m just here to check how everyone is doing” Matthias smiled thoughtfully. 

“Okay, well I’m fine” Lukas told.

“Good, good. What are you reading?” Matthias asked.

“50 shades of grey” Lukas answered monotone.

“Oh, okay then” Matthias blushed looking to the side.

“I’m joking don’t worry, it’s just a book that one of the other nurses handed to me” Lukas raised his eyebrow.

“Oh, cool” Matthias said happily “Found your brother by the way, spoke to him. He’s fine”

“Thank you, I appreciate it”.

“No problem”


	2. Give Me Comfort

Leon was terrified, Emil was not at Six form that day. He had not gotten any sort of message from his best friend. At first, he thought he was sick and had forgotten to text him. However, it seemed that no matter how much he seemed to text Emil he was always left on delivered. It was confusing because Emil was usually always on his phone on days off Leon had decided he would go visit his best friend. 

So that is how he ended up in front of the burnt, crispy house. He was shaking with fear, where was Emil? Was he alright, what happened to him? Leon looked around for anyone who could tell him what had happened, he noticed Feliciano.

Feliciano was Emil’s neighbour for years; he was always happy and bubbly. He had always offered the boys that him and his husband has baked whenever the boys walked past the house. Leon decided he was currently his best bet.

“Umm, Mr Vargas?” Leon attempted to get the other’s attention.

“Oh! Hello Leon!” Feliciano looked up from watering his lilies.

“I was wondering if you, like, knew where Emil is?” Leon asked.

“Oh dear! Last night there was a fire, I called the fire services and ambulance. Lukas and Emil are both currently in hospital” Feliciano told looking worriedly at Leon.

Leon nodded, understanding the words that had come from the other lips. He stood there asking as many questions as physically possible. Feliciano didn’t know most of the answers but gave what little information that he could. All he knew was that Emil and Lukas were in hospital.

Leon thanked the other for his information, he needed to see Emil immediately. One problem, how would he get there? If he told Yao then that would cause a massive fuss in the house, perhaps he could go by himself on the bus.

After he got off at the hospital parking lot he glanced around, he had never really been to the big ones he only really went to the small clinics down the road. He had never broken a bone before, so he only needed check ups. However, he would have to learn to navigate this place soon enough.

Walking towards the front desk there was a man typing at the computer. He asked if he could see his friend and a nurse came along to show him where Emil was. The nurse asked him a lot of question at first but soon he was being led up to ward by blonde haired man.

“Oh, he really is strong! He has only been here since yesterday, but he is making improvements” Tino turned back around to Leon with a hopefully smile.

“Well, that’s good” Leon shrugged, he was happy he had a nice nurse looking after Emil, but he wasn’t really listening to what the other had to say he was just looking forward to seeing his friend.

“So, are you a family member?” Tino asked when they reached the front of the ward that Emil had been placed in.

“No, I am more like a best friend” Leon confirmed, slowly rubbing the back of his neck.

“Aww! How sweet, hopefully he will be happy to see you” Tino tucked some hair behind his ear “Come on then”.

Tino led Leon through the ward, Leon was again not taking notice of anyone else. The rest of the world was blurry, unimportant. Leon had only had one thing on his mind. He needed to know if Emil was alright or whether or not the nurse was lying. The rest of his problems deemed irrelevant. 

Eventually they reached the end of the ward, Emil’s curtain pulled back so no one could see in. Leon’s heart began to race, his hands shaking as he slowly tried to push some stray strands of hair away from his eyes.

Tino pulled back the blue cover and Leon almost gasped in shock.

His skin, paler than usual almost as if someone had laid him in snow and his skin had blended in with the colour. His hair, crispy from not washing it looked close to abandoning his head. His eyes, lifeless almost the deep lilac pooling drawing anyone who looked at him in like a siren’s song. 

Tino put his clip board in front of both his and Leon’s face from a minute to whisper something.

“He is getting better but at the moment he is weak, if anything happens ring the bell and someone will be here in a second” Tino’s light bubbly smile had faded to a more serious tone and so the only thing Leon could do was nod. 

“Wonderful! Now! I’ll be off” Tino stated, slipping back, and trotting off.

Leon pulled the curtain back after he stepped in, he wasn’t too sure if Emil had noticed him yet or if he was even awake yet. He looked peaceful, his chest rising and falling. It seemed Emil had noticed Leon walking in when he slowly turned his head to glance at Leon.

“Hi” Leon whispered, taking seat in the chair. He looked upon Emil with a certain type of fondness.

“Hello” Emil answered, his voice was a little louder since the oxygen mask around his face.

“You’re stupid ya know?” Leon chuckled at the other.

“Wow thanks, I feel so welcomed by your greeting” Emil’s eyebrows arched but his mouth was twisted into a smirk.

“Sorry, how are you doing?” Leon asked.

“Well, as good as I can be doing” Emil laughed painfully, a spiteful pain striking his lungs.

“Ah, you’re like not dead. So that’s good” Leon joked.

“Yeah” His response was drawn out, almost as if he were disappointed. Leon brushed it off for now.

They chatted; it was a catch up on what had happened in the last days at school that Emil had missed. Apparently, once Emil was able to sit up and move again the school would be sending him his schoolwork. Leon laughed at how much Emil groaned at the thought of doing work but before the incident he had missed many days of school which he needed to catch up on so he would eventually have to deal with it.

“Anyway, don’t tell anyone at school. The teachers said they would keep it on the low, but I’m just worried you will go talking to everyone about it” Emil explained.

“Me? Go talking to everyone? Well, I just don’t know what you are referring to young man” Leon pretended to be shocked and offended, even going as far as to place a hand on his forehead.

“Dramatic much? Just join the drama club already” Emil rolled his eyes.

“Maybe I will, let’s like see” Leon winked at the other. 

Emil chuckled slightly; it was the best he could do since his lungs still felt heavy. Leon was just the light he needed right now, perhaps he would never admit it, but his best friend was the best thing to ever happen to him. Leon had been there since the day he arrived in England. 

“So, where is Lukas?” Leon asked, curious as to where the other sibling had ended up.

“He is in a different ward; I don’t know where he is, but he is in hospital” Emil nodded at the direction of the door. 

“What? That is hardly like fair” Leon grumbled.

“It’s for the best for now” Emil reassured Leon, smiling a little.

Leon wasn’t on board with the idea of the two being separated but if Emil were alright with it then it wouldn’t necessarily matter what he said to any doctor. Leon huffed, he glanced back at Emil whose neck had begun to ache, so he had laid it back on the pillow.

The brown-haired boy looking back around the surroundings, the white and blue were a nice contrast, but it didn’t give a very homey environment. One could certainly become uncomfortable very quickly whilst living here. The chemical smell that drifted through the air made Leon feel sick, he had only been to hospital once and that was around when he was nine and Mei had pushed him off the bike.

Perhaps it was not the fact it did not feel very homey in here but the daunting fear of being stuck in a place like this. Most of Leon’s older siblings were in some sort of medical profession. Kiku was a doctor, Chaiya was a surgeon and Linn was a psychologist. Im-Hyung-Soo and Im Yong Soo were studying medicine in University and Mei was already on her way to complete her master’s. Everyone was waiting for him.

Leon was a smart kid, he got good grades and Yao had big expectations for him. The tanned skin boy was sure he could live up to all of these if he tried harder enough and making the elder proud, but he wasn’t sure it was what he wanted to do in life. Sure, the job paid well, saving lives would have been a good job and he would feel proud of himself.

Leon was more artistic; he loved the art of graffiti. He would spend hours in his room covering a canvas, knowing that not everyone would appreciate it. Many think his art style is associated with crime and while it was true that a lot of people who did crime used spray paint to vandalize things Leon didn’t see it that way. He found the style beautiful and creative.

“Hey Emil?” Leon asked, finally coming out of his haze of thinking.

“Mhm?” Emil replied slowly turning his head.

“When we go to University what would you study?” Leon looked eagerly back at his friend, awaiting his answer.

“Um, I’m not sure probably like English or something, why?” It was obvious Emil hadn’t put much thought into his answer, he was never really keen to answer the University question and almost always gave a vague answer because despite being in Six form and doing his A levels, he was still unsure of what he would like to do.

“Like, what do you think Yao would say about art school?” Leon pondered.

“Leon, I don’t know. Wouldn’t he rather you be a doctor?” Emil’s lips were pressed in a line, concerned.

“I know but If I explained, I think he would be okay?” Leon was mostly trying to tell himself that everything would be okay but the uncertainty that traced his voice deceived him. 

“Whatever makes you happy, but I’m not to sure he will be in full support of it” Emil cautioned.

“I know but like, I really want to do art and I think I could make a great future with it” Leon protested.

Emil just sighed and nodded at the other, a smile forming on his lips. The ones thig about Leon was if he had his heart set on something, he was going to get that something in whatever way it took. He was a hard worker when given the right tools. He may play this ruffed up teenage look but deep down he was a gentleman.

-

Lukas flicked throw a couple pages of his book, checking how long it would be until he finished it. It was worrying to him when he had only been here for a day and already, he was halfway throw finish the book. There was not much to do at the hospital of course but it would help if he had brought his phone but now that he thinks about it, the technology was most likely burned in the fire. 

Matthias had come in this morning to give him food, checked over his burns and moisturised them. They had made conversation and despite how loud and optimist the Dane was he gave good company.

Lukas appreciated the other’s constant need to talk, although he was more comfortable with the silence, he wasn’t uncomfortable when the Matthias filled up every moment of stillness. Lukas didn’t know if Matthias world ever slowed down or took a break for a minute, it always seemed to be moving at the speed of light every colour imaginable flashing past.

The Norwegian man’s world had always been slow, and he had come to be comfortable with that. There had been times where it had flashed by and Lukas did not think he would have been able to grasp how fast it was moving but he managed and here he was.

Lukas gave a look to the clock besides his bed, taking note that it was lunchtime. Matthias should be here soon enough, with his tray. Noted that hospital food wasn’t the best but when you’re stuck sat in a bed with not their choice you begin to become very comfortable with the flavour.

“Hiya Luke!” Matthias cheered, his signature smile on his face as he drew back the curtain.

“You know, you should ask before pulling back someone’s curtain. You never know what you could be walking into” Lukas states.

“Oh, I know. You’d think I would learn from everything but nope!” Matthias chuckled.

“You’re stupid you know” Lukas jokes, finally feeling like he can make a joke again.

“Thanks, take that as compliment” Matthias winked.

Lukas tutted as Matthias placed the tray over his knee, putting the food down afterwards. Matthias had always stayed with Lukas while he was on lunch break, no longer wanting to sit in the break room. It always got a little loud in there for his liking anyways. He was a loud person yes but there were some things that were just too loud.

“So, what do you work as?” Matthias asked, deciding he would stay.

“Hm? Oh, I’m Maths teacher“ Lukas answered between bites of his food.

“What!? Wow, lucky you understand any of it” Matthias gave a surprise look, if he was honest, he wasn’t the best at maths, but he tried his best.

“Maths isn’t actually that hard, people just make it out to be” Lukas muttered rolling his eyes.

“It was hard for me! I nearly failed my Maths GCSE; besides, you must have studied it for years to be good enough to teach” Matthias pointed out.

“ I suppose, but it doesn’t matter. The more you complain about not knowing how to do it the less you are trying to actually understand” Lukas protested.

“Yeah true, do you think you are a strict teacher?” Matthias mused.

“No, I don’t think I am” Lukas shook his head while sipping at his water bottle.

“What if I were to ask one of your students?” The Dane smirked.

“That’s their opinion, I get along with the students who are interested. I don’t mind if they don’t understand it is whether or not they are trying in my class” Lukas stated.  
“Fair enough” Matthias agreed.

Lukas finished eating his food, a slow talk continuing with Matthias. Whether the two liked it or not, they had good lot in common. Both being from Scandinavian countries, they liked similar food and shows.

Matthias had just begun to talk about how he got accepted into medical school when Tino pulled the curtains back suddenly.

“Matthias! We have a kid above having an asthma attack, nobody who isn’t on break has your experience! Get up here!” He yelled.

“Okay coming! Sorry Luke!” Matthias yelled back as he sped off. 

Lukas didn’t say anything back as Matthias drew his curtain back close, he stayed silent looking at the place where the other man had once sat. 

He didn’t know what to say, he felt comfort. Matthias had spoken to him as though nothing mattered, as though he wasn’t just a patient. As though he wasn’t just a number that didn’t mean much, and Lukas appreciated that a lot. 

Before the accident Emil had been unwilling to talk and distant. He was only partial to the odd good morning or a small conversation about how schoolwork. Lukas was concerned that he wasn’t talking as much, but he also knew that their family wasn’t exactly known for talking.

Emil had just continued with his life, occasionally sleeping at Leon’s and his friend sometimes coming over. At times it felt as though they didn’t even live in the same household. Lukas let it go and just thought it was normal teenage antics.

But he missed his little brother sometimes.  
-  
“Pull the oxygen mask over again!” Matthias yelled at someone who immediately did what they were told. There was no questioning his orders in a time like this.

Matthias looked down at his patient quickly seeing if he was still breathing. He was but he was still coughing and spluttering, he suddenly recognised him.

“Can you hear me Emil?” Matthias desperately gazed at the other.

Emil’s violet eyes filled with tears as he nodded, he was in pain. His lungs were tight, and he couldn’t breathe. It felt as though someone was sitting on his chest and wasn’t letting him breathe. He looked up at Matthias who was giving the best smile he could as everyone in the ward moved about preparing the medicine for him.

“Okay, good we are going to give you something to help! Just breath with me when we put it in your mouth okay?” Matthias said, trying to give his patient reassurance.

Emil just nodded again as he felt the oxygen mask be taken off from his mouth and nose and Matthias slowly brought up and aqua green object putting it in Emil’s mouth. Emil gazed at Matthias who began breathing in and out heavily, opting for Emil to copy him.

Emil did as the nurse was demonstrating, he felt a gush of some sort of chemical down his throat as he breathed. His lungs began to feel more at ease and it felt as though whoever was sitting on them began to get up. He grabbed the side of the bed, his eyes closing as the object was pulled from his mouth and the oxygen mask was placed back on his face.

Matthias stayed there with him until he was alright once again. He was thankful because everyone else left. Emil’s eyes fluttered open.

“Hey kid how are you doing?” Matthias asked, smiling at the other.

Emil didn’t respond verbally he didn’t have the energy, he just put his thumb up.

Perhaps he could get used to this.


End file.
